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World number four Agnieszka Radwanska has talked about her strong Catholic faith. As such, she became a spokesperson for a Cathoic youth movement in her native Poland.

But now the youth movement, Krucjata Mlodych (Youth Crusade), which runs a campaign dubbed "I'm not ashamed of Jesus", has dropped Radwanska after she posed nude in the ESPN 'body' issue.

Warsaw: World number four Agnieszka Radwanska has been dropped by a Catholic youth movement in her native Poland for posing nude in the "Body Issue" of ESPN Magazine.

Radwanska, 24, who makes no secret of her strong Catholic faith, is photographed in profile without a stitch, sitting in a lawn chair by a pool filled with tennis balls.

While not explicit, the nude has proven too much for a Catholic group known as Krucjata Mlodych (Youth Crusade), which runs a campaign dubbed "I'm not ashamed of Jesus".

The young Catholics, who claim more than a million followers, dropped Radwanska last week for what they said was "immoral behaviour" in the ESPN spread.

This year's beaten Wimbledon semi-finalist previously appeared in a television commercial sponsored by the group in which she spelled out the word "Jesus" with tennis balls and urged young Poles not to be ashamed of their faith.

A body is nothing to be ashamed about. But such a pose in such a magazine is titillation pure and simple and poor judgement on the part of the young lady. The youth movement really had no choice.

Equally troubling but way more gross, the 77 year old Gary Player also posed nude for the issue. Ick.

7 comments:

The woman must be a dedicated athlete to be ranked fourth in the world of tennis. Too bad she fell into the trap so many women do, that reducing themselves to their bodies as their primary point of contribution is acceptable. It's not empowering. Being one of the best in the world in some sport....that is empowering!

Am I the only one who doesn't see top sportswomen as being good role models for catholic girls?The clothes she wears on the court are only slightly more modest than that photo shoot.The pressure on these women not to get pregnant exposes them to terrible temptation.The fanatical drive for worldly success that you need to reach the top of these sports doesn't seem good for spirituality or even psychological health.

Dear Agnieszka,According to Catechism (of the faith you claim to profess) reference #2351 "Lust is disordered desire for or inordinate enjoyment of sexual pleasure. Sexual pleasure is morally disordered when sought for itself, isolated from its procreative and unitive purposes."Your photo can lead to (or is) a mortal sin. When a photo like this gets circulated (and it will) the sin is multiplied many times over...when and if it incites the person viewing it to mortal sin, you are culpable.

What is so especially icky about G.P.'s body? I guess death and decay (dust to dust) is naturally undesirable, but surely there's still a nobility about the body, even at that age. The death of the earthly body can still teach us a lot and need not be mocked, however gently.

Anyways, thanks for covering this topic, unlike anyone else in the Catholic blogosphere.

I think the correct moral calculus for Radwanska and ESPN is one of prudence, which was probably failed, but if so, that would only make her foolish, not sinful per se (if she wanted to incite lust instead). If her desire was to make a gift of her own body to show God's goodness in the human body, I wonder what other forums would have provided better vehicles. Also, I'm not sure she made people more likely to lust since those impure people would have simply found another person to be objectified easily enough. I think we should give her motives some slack.

The question of whether the youth league should have dropped her has other independent variables which I don't want to get into.

She is young and ignorant, as are most young people in today’s society. They have been conditioned by the media(magazines,movies, television programs, etc. that it is perfectly all right to seek “Fame and FORTUNE” by exposing their bodies. She wants tojustify her seeking glory and money by claiming, “other people do it.” She is to ignorant to understand the impact on othersof looking at her nude body. It will arouse people sexually in a society that is already “overly” sexed. She’s a WHORE. She sellsher body for money. Isn’t that what whores do? As a psychologist and Christian, I agree with the Catholic group Youth Crusade.The Bible teaches modesty in dress but who reads the Bible anymore? If she was in a Muslim country she would be harshlypunished instead of glorified, as she is in America. Shame on her. Shame on America for glorifying the “ANYTHING GOES”values sexually. Judgment from God will come on America if it hasn’t all ready started with 9/11. Severe judgment will come.It’s just a matter of time.Dr. Bob ParkerRetired School Psychologist